Pentagon spokesman Marine Corps Col. Dave Lapan said Mullen is the first chairman to visit that nation since Marine Corps Gen. Peter Pace did so in 2007.

Mullen travels to China at the invitation of Gen. Chen Bingde, chief of the general staff of the Chinese army, Lapan said.

“Admiral Mullen looks forward to continuing the engagement and dialogue that began during General Chen’s visit to the United States in May,” Lapan said.

The chairman’s trip will include a wide range of meetings with top Chinese military officials, as well as visits to Chinese army units, the colonel said. The chairman also is scheduled to speak to students at Renmin University in Beijing, he added.